Process for the industrial manufacture of fabrics, strips or ribbons and the so manufactured products

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a process and a device for making piled strips or ribbons starting from thermoplastic fabrics, strips or ribbons of great width, said process comprising a pile levelling, heating, pressing and cutting operations by which the pile is locally heated to the softening temperature and is driven back into the free spaces of the underlying substructure.

Unite States Patent De Brabander l PROCESS FOR THE INDUSTRIALMANUFACTURE OF FABRICS, STRIPS OR RIBBONS AND THE SO MANUFACTUREDPRODUCTS [75] Inventor: Jean De Brabander,

Hamme-Durme, Belgium [73] Assignee: Velcro S.A., Cesar-Soulie,

Switzerland [22] Filed: Feb. 16, 1970 [21] Appl. No.: 11,863

[52] U.S. Cl 156/88, 156/72, 156/435 [51] Int. Cl D03d 47/50 [58] Fieldof Search 156/72, 88, 435

[56] References Cited UNlTED STATES PATENTS 3,134,693 5/1964 Curran, Jr156/88 Mar. 18, 1975 3,226,275 12/1965 Kiess 156/88 3,367,810 2/1968Wasserstein 156/88 Primary ExaminerBenjamin A. Borchelt AssistantExaminerH. J. Tudor Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Richards & Geier [57]ABSTRACT The invention relates to a process and a device for makingpiled strips or ribbons starting from thermoplastic fabrics, strips orribbons of great width, said process comprising a pile levelling,heating, pressing and cutting operations by which the pile is locallyheated to the softening temperature and is driven back into the freespaces of the underlying substructure.

1 Claim, N0 Drawings PROCESS FOR THE INDUSTRIAL MANUFACTURE OF FABRICS,STRIPS OR RIBBONS AND THE SO MANUFACTURED PRODUCTS This inventionrelates to the manufacture of any type of ribbons of textile materialand more particularly of textile pile products such as some velvets,said textile products being made completely or partially of athermoplastic material.

Another embodiment of the invention refers to the production ofso-called hooking-up closing ribbons.

Generally, said ribbons are made on looms at the width of the finishedproducts. This is however a relatively slow and expensive process due tothe relatively reduced sizes of numerous ribbons and the limited speedof the looms. From the economic point of view, this drawback is furtherincreased in that, to meet the needs of the customers, the manufacturermust store relatively large amounts of ribbons having different widthsconcerning which he does not know whether they will be ordered and healso does not know how long they will be stored.

of course, it has been suggested (and, in fact, this process has beenapplied) to start from fabrics of substantial width and to cut themsubsequently into strips or straps. This procedure, which is seeminglysimple and apparent, is however unacceptable owing to the absence ofselvedges and consequently the vulnerability of the marginal edges ofsuch ribbons and their unacceptable appearance.

Another process, which is apparently as simple and rational, comprisesweaving on a large width, but with the omission, at suitableintermediate distances, of a number of warp threads, center selvedgesbeing made at said locations by means, while the fabric is then severedupstreams of the winder to be thereby split into a corresponding numberof ribbons.

Although this process solves a problem relating to the productionincrease in a given time, it has however the same shortcoming in that itmay be applied only in the cases where the width of the ribbon beingmade may be previously determined. In that case too, this will ofteninvalve storage considerations. In addition, the appearance of thelongitudinal edges of the ribbons will be also often objectionable.

lt has further been suggested to make selvedges or center selvedges bydressing or sizing. Finally, it is wellknown that the textile industryincreasingly uses synthetic materials and more particularly threads of athermoplastic resin.

Consequently, it has already been attempted to make selvedges or centerselvedges by thermal melting of warp and weft threads at the location ofthe selvedges, thereby forming, on 'both sides, marginal strips havingan improper amorphous texture, which would not be suitable in most caseswhere ribbons are used, a normal sewing being substantially impossiblewith such selvedges or center selvedges.

This invention relates only to more or less long pile ribbons or fabricsusing at least a portion of threads of thermoplastic material.

The object to the invention is essentially to provide fabrics, strips orribbons having a predetermined width which is at least equal to thegreatest width of the ribbons intended for use or a multiple of saidmaximum width.

In this way, it is possible to provide a continuous and,

The object of the invention is a process providing said storage moduliwhereby it will be also possible, in a second operation and generally ona different machine, to distribute fabrics, strips or ribbons having therequired widths in accordance with the received orders. Since the widthsbeing produced will be generally submultiples of a fabric, a strip or aribbon being stored, the production will be accelerated accordingly.

The process according to the invention for distributing such fabrics,strips or ribbons forming storage moduli comprises substantiallysubjecting the marginal edges of the discharged ribbons to thesimultaneous action of levelling, heating, pressing and cutting, butunder such conditions that said piles are only heated to the softeningtemperature and that, into this plastic state, they are driven back inthe free spaces of the meshes of the underlying substructure withoutmodifying the physical state of substantially all constituting warp andweft threads,

The levelling operation will be applied in all the cases where thelength of the piles is such that the mass of the thermoplastic materialformed by the piles corresponding to the selvedge being made, is moreimportant than the free spaces of the meshes of the substructureprovided to receive said thermoplastic material during the heating andthe pressing step. This leveling operation is, in a manner, an operationcontrolling the predetermining, prior to the subsequent steps of theprocess, the proportion of thermoplastic material of the piles adjoiningthe marginal areas provided for the subsequent formation of the selvedgeor center selvedge proper under the conditions of the process accordingto the invention. This levelling operation may be carried out with anymechanical, physical, chemical or similar means, it being possible touse all said means provided they are capable of separating the excess ofpiles or pile lengths at the location of the selvedges or the centerselvedges being made.

By way of exaple, it may be considered that the said levelling step maybe carried out by cutting or shearing by means of knives the shape, thesizes and the relative position of which are determined in accordancewith the width of the selvedge or center selvedge being made.

it is apparent that, with a fabric, a strip or a ribbon beingdistributed in elements having a smaller width in which the piles arerelatively short and in any case such that they form a mass ofthermoplastic material in a proportion lesser than or equal to the sumof the free spaces presented by the meshes of the underlyingsubstructure of the fabric, this levelling operation will beunnecessary.

The heating and pressing steps must be at least par tially simultaneousso that the thermoplastic material is duly driven back into the freespaces provided by the meshes of the underlying substructure of thefabric when they are in a suitable plastic state.

The heating step must be conducted in such manner that the physicalstate of warp and/or weft threads of the substructure of the pile fabricis not substantially modified. In other words, if all or some of saidwarp and/or weft threads are made of a thermoplastic material, it isessential that they are not heated to the softening temperature. Theresult being reached is that said warp and/or weft threads are kept insuch state that, within the thickness of the selvedges or centerselvedges, they are connected with each other only by the mass ofthermoplastic material coming from the heated and pressed piles, therebyremaining in the form of a true weave. These very particular conditionsof the process according to the invention have substantial advantages Infact, the resulting selvedges or center selvedges are still veryflexible and they have a maximum resistance to levelling and to thedefibering and, principally, said selvedges or center selvedges allowthe subsequent setting of the ribbons by sewing, which would bepractically excluded if the selvedges or center selvedges would beproduced by softening and pressing of all the constituting material ofthe selvedges or center selvedges, i.e. the constituting material of thepiles as well as that of the warp and weft threads of the fabricsubstructure.

This at least partially simultaneous operation of heating and pressingmay be carried out also by very different-means. In one embodiment, itwill be possible to use a blade, a shoe or a slide capable of heatingand pressing the pile fabric along the marginal edges the intermediatedistance of which is determined by the width of the fabric, the strip orthe ribbon being distributed.

Finally, the cutting or distributing step proper of the fabric, thestrip or the ribbon coming from fabric, the strip or the ribbon having agreater width may be carried out by any type of blades or knives.

In another embodiment of the means capable of using the processaccording to the invention, it will be also possible to combine theheating, pressing and cutting means in a single tool, since it would bepossible to align said means in only one moving equipment in front ofwhich the fabric, the strip or the ribbon being distributed may beshifted. Such equipment may be provided, e.g'. under the form ofaheating knife the outline of which is such that it may simultaneouslysoften and press the thermoplastic material at the location of theselvedge or center selvedge, while cutting or distributing also fabrics,strips or ribbons having a smaller width. In any case, the levellingstep provided to bring the piles to a suitable length at predeterminedlocations may be carried out by any means capable of cutting, shearing,grinding, milling, abrading, wearing, trimming or any other equivalentmeans.

The invention relates to the disclosed process as well as to any devicecapable of using it. It relates also to any fabrics, strips or ribbonshaving selvedges consisting of a thermoplastic material filling up theinterstices of the meshes of the underlying substructure of the fabricthe warp and weft threads of which have not been substantially modifiedduring formation of the said selvedge.

What I claim is:

l. A process of producing ribbons from a relatively large sheet offabric susceptible to raveling when cut and consisting ofa structurewith interstices covered by piles made of a thermoplastic material, saidprocess comprising the steps of heating the piles of surfaces intendedto form marginal edges of said ribbons to a temperature at which saidpiles are in a softened state and pressing the thus softened piles inthe interstices of said structure.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No.3',"s:71,933 Dated March 18, 1975 O lnventol-(s) Jean De Brabander It iscertified that error appears in the above-identified patent and thatsaid Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

139] Foreign Application Priority Data Belgium 729,090 Feb. 28, 1969 0Belgium 732,958 May 13, 1969.

Signed and Scaled this second Day of Deccmber1975 [SEAL] AIICSI.

' RUTH C. MASON C. IAISIIALL DANN .4 Nesting Offlt'ff (ummissiunerofPathts and. Trudi-flunk! FORM PO-1050 (10-69) USCOMM-DC 60375-P69 LLSvGOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 1

1. A process of producing ribbons from a relatively large sheet offabric susceptible to raveling when cut and consisting of a structurewith interstices covered by piles made of a thermoplastic material, saidprocess comprising the steps of heating the piles of surfaces intendedto form marginal edges of said ribbons to a temperature at which saidpiles are in a softened state and pressing the thus softened piles inthe interstices of said structure.